How to Go for a Fall Color Drive

Seems pretty simple right?  Hop in the car, navigate to the nearest road out of town, apply some pressure to the right pedal, and it’s all taken care of right?

Here’s some tips on how to ensure you get the most spectrum for your gas dollars.

Get off the Interstate.

No matter where you live the interstate is the wrong road to be on if you’re looking for fall colors.  Sure some stretches of New England’s I-95 may be acceptable but if you want a quality, quiet, and traffic free experience stick to state highways and byways.  Fire up Google Maps and look for the most isolated twisty road you can find.  Odds are very good that this is an excellent starting location.  If you can see about making a loop.  Use right click and add destinations connecting twisty roads together until you’ve got a nice 4-6 hour trip.

Make a day of it.

Light is really different in the morning compared to noon to the afternoon/evening.  Morning and afternoon light when the sun is low on the horizon makes all the fall colors seem warmer and richer.  While bright noon day sun will make all the bright fall foliage pop next to the evergreens and other pine trees which don’t change.  The longer you spend on your trip the more likely you are to catch the light at just the right moment.  Plus it gives you the chance to sample some of the finer mom and pop restaurants.  When you stop for gas feel free to ask the attendant what’s the best restaurant in town.  Odds are pretty good it’s not that expensive.

Get the timing right.

More important than the light is the timing.  While things may seem green in the city odds are good at higher elevations things are in full bloom.  The colder a region is the earlier the fall colors come out, seasonal temperatures can also affect when colors peak.  Check out http://www.fs.fed.us/news/fallcolors/index.shtm l  this collection of national park websites keep tabs on where colors are peaking state by state.  There’s also a huge list of numbers to call for each state to talk to a local ranger to get the inside information on where best to go.

Take a Hike.

Once you find yourself on your twisty road in gorgeous light in an area with peak colors it gets only better.  Get out of the car and just start walking.  Odds are pretty good that you’re in a national forest, state park, or wilderness area or you might be near one.   If not don’t fear, look for a drive way and kindly ask the owner if you can take a stroll on their property.  More often than not they’ll let you and sometimes you even get free snacks out of just meeting new people.  Once you’re away from the road surrounded with surreal colors and high on forest smells you’ll know why you made the effort.

Here’s some advice on where to go if you’re near or in Colorado:

If you’ve got:

2 hours: Take 285 South from Denver to Kenosha Pass, park at the top of the pass.  The Colorado Trail passes through this area and there’s lots of popular mountain biking.  Hike towards the large seasonal pond at the top of the pass and enjoy the colors.  Map

OR  Take CO-72 up through Coal Creek Canyon, the colors don’t start getting good until you’re a good ways up the canyon.  There are some easy dirt roads on this route, but even the humblest minivan can easily deal with them.  There’s a great overlook in Golden Gate State Park that gives you great views of Pikes Peak and the front range.  Map

6 hours: Head to Cottonwood Pass near Buena Vista.  Take US-285 South from Denver and follow it to US-24.  Head North on 24 just a short distance and you’ll be in Buena Vista.  Near the center of town you’ll see signs pointing West for Cottonwood Pass.  Take this route.  The pass is paved to the top and easy dirt on the West side.  Aspens are great all the way up and if you continue down to Taylor Reservoir on the far side of the pass there’s lots of great picnic sites. Map

OR Drive down 285 South until you get to the South Pine Valley Road turn off.  Take a left and continue  down this road.  If you’ve gotten a late start Zoka’s Restaurant (about 10-15 minutes down this road on the left) is a great Lunch/Dinner stop, if you’ve gotten an early start keep going down to Woodland Park, The Hungry Bear Restaurant has enormous pancakes and fantastic food but they’re only open till 2.   Stay on CO-67 and head to Divide.  From here head toward Cripple Creek but continue onward to the little town of Victor.  There’s great aspens all along this route.  Victor is a neat town that used to have 12K people in it and now is nearly abandoned with only 400 left.  There’s great 1900’s architecture and a sense of silence that you’re unlikely to find in any tourist towns during fall colors.  Map

All Day: Head to Cottonwood pass (see the first 6 hour plan) and go over it.  Continue down the dirt road to the Taylor Park Reservoir and continue to CO-135.  Take 135 North to Crested Butte.  If you’re feeling peckish grab lunch and the Wooden Nickel for some good mountain food or Go to the LoBar for the best sushi you’ll ever find in a land locked state (they fly it in daily from Hawaii).  Now Head North out of Crested Butte to Kebler Pass.  This is a dirt road but any passenger car can handle it as long as you’ve got a couple inches of ground clearance.  This is really a rare treat.  The aspens grow right up to the road on both sides and nearly form a canopy overhead.  There’s incredible views of the West Elk Mountains along the way as well.  Once you meet up with pavement again head north to McClure Pass.  If the day light is fading just skirt up to Carbondale and take I-70 home or if you’ve got the time head to Aspen and grab an early dinner or save dinner and go over Independence Pass for a last hurrah.  You can head back to I-70 from Leadville.  Map

If you’d like some advice on your local area drop me a comment and I’ll see what I can put together.

- Eric Starling is a photographer and website designer, he also believes the world has too many moths.